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Flying Colours Delivers Sparkle Roll CRJ200s

​​Completions specialist Flying Colours Corp. has delivered the first three CRJ200 ex-airliner-to-VIP conversions for Chinese luxury company Sparkle Roll’s SR Jet, and will deliver three more by the end of the year.

The remaining two of the original deal for eight aircraft are still parked in China as airliners. Plans to fly them to Flying Colours’ Peterborough, Canada, headquarters for conversion are still under discussion, says Executive VP Eric Gillespie.

The conversions unique in that they are the first B-registered aircraft converted outside China and re-delivered with a Chinese CAAC STC.

SR Jet’s first three aircraft are 29-seat, multi-class Corporate Shuttle aircraft, in service for charter. The next three are being outfitted in a VIP role similar to Flying Colours’ ExecLiner. SR Jet’s managed fleet also includes a Challenger 850 that was completed by Flying Colours.

The company has completed over 30 CRJ conversions into corporate shuttles or into its ExecLiner VIP configuration in the last ten years. It delivered two 16-seat CRJs to Resorts World Malaysia in December.

“China is a very strong market for us,” says Gillespie, and although it has slowed from its peak there is demand for more refurbishments. The company has delivered no fewer than 15 Bombardier Challenger 850 completions to Chinese customers since August 2008, in addition to seven Bombardier CRJ700s with VIP+ airline interiors. The first converted CRJ200 ExecLiner for China (it has nothing to do with the Sparkle Roll agreement) was delivered by Flying Colours to Freesky Aviation.

An earlier plan for Sparkle Roll and Flying Colours to set up a completions center for CRJ200 and other large-sized jets in a hangar facility at Linyi City in Shangdong “is still in the background,” says Gillespie. “Time will tell.”

Discuss this Article 1

Makes sense to me. Since the CRJ was originally derived from the Challenger business jet, why not convert a few back as airline demand declines? I guess it doesn't feed CEO egos like a shiny G 650, though...